Interests of investors will be taken into account – Alikhan Smailov calls on foreign companies to invest in Kazakhstan

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Alikhan Smailov, participated in the panel session “Investing in Energy and Food Sustainability. Kazakhstan's case” at the Astana Finance Days 2022 conference.

The event was also attended by Deputy Chair of the Supreme Council for Reforms under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Sir Suma Chakrabarti, AIFC Governor Kairat Kelimbetov, Minister of Energy Bolat Akchulakov, Managing Director of Condor Petroleum Inc. Norman Storm, Regional Director of Çalık Holding in Kazakhstan Kenan Akkirman and others.

In his speech, Alikhan Smailov noted that world prices for hydrocarbons and food products are at a historical high, which is affecting the quality of life of people in many countries, including in Kazakhstan.

“With that in mind, we can certainly appreciate the timeliness of the political reforms, initiated by the President, Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev at the beginning of this year. These reforms, once performed, will, in turn, trigger the deep economic transformations,” the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan said. 

The Head of Government emphasized that Kazakhstan, having a solid political and economic foundation, is the gateway to the largest world markets today with a volume of more than 1 billion potential consumers, including the Eurasian Economic Union and China, and is rightfully considered a transit hub in Central Asia.

Over the years of independence, Kazakhstan has attracted 390 billion USD of foreign direct investments, most of which was attracted in the last 10 years.
In 2021, the inflow of FDI was estimated at 24 billion USD, which is 38% higher than in the previous year.

At the same time, the share of investments in oil and gas in 2021 was 28%, whereas in 2018-2019 this share was 50%.

“This shows the active on-going diversification of the national economy. Considering the global turn of events with the commodity prices, we have to explore more into our energy and agricultural opportunities,” Alikhan Smailov emphasized.

According to the Prime Minister, significant natural resources make our country an important supplier to global commodity markets. Moreover, Kazakhstan ranks 6th in the world in terms of agricultural land.

“Both sectors are important in facilitating investments into creating the high value added products. The Government is providing favorable conditions and support to investors, who come to Kazakhstan,” the Prime Minister noted.

Currently, 13 special economic zones and 36 industrial zones are operating in Kazakhstan, which ensure a preferential investment regime. In addition, the country’s Astana International Financial Center serves as a point of interest for investors from all over the world due to the established Common English Law regime.

“The Government welcomes foreign investors to initiate investment projects and conclude investment contracts. We can ensure that investors’ interests will be taken into account as much as possible,” Alikhan Smailov concluded.

For reference: On June 27-29, the Astana International Financial Center is holding the 5th Astana Finance Days conference dedicated to sustainable development, social responsibility and growth.

Astana Finance Days is one of the largest financial conferences in the region. Over the past four years, over 15,000 participants from over 100 countries have participated in the conference.

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